Making the Home/School Connection

1. Making the Home/School Connection February 23, 2010 Joint ESU 6 & ESU 7 Consortium Title III Meeting Holiday Inn Express, Fremont 10 AM- 2 PM

2. Agenda • Norms • Getting Acquainted • Efforts/Ideas Regarding the Family – School Connection • Title III Needs for 2010 and Beyond • Your Pertinent Questions, Challenges, and Ideas • Sharing Effective Resources

3. Norms • Listen for new ideas • Participate in activities • Ask questions to clarify your thinking  • Respect the ideas of others • Be mindful of time

4. ESUs 6 &7 Family & School Involvement

6. -Your name & state you grew up in Were you the 1st-2nd-3rd generation in your family to go to college?

7. -Your name & a team you have been on Relate how your parents interacted with your education.

8. Your name & a • hobby/talent that involved learning a new skill Share what makes your building parent-friendly.

9. -Your name & first job Share a form of parent communication utilized by your district.

10. -Your name & a memory of a time when your parents came to school What is the relationship of parent involvement and student achievement?

11. Thank your partner for sharing their knowledge and return to your seat

12. What does the research say? “Partnerships among schools, families, and community groups are not a luxury, they are a necessity” Henderson, Mapp, Johnson and Davies, 2007

13. What are the requirements regarding the role of parents of LEP students? • “Each LEA using Title III funds to provide a language instruction educational program must implement an effective means of outreach to parents of limited English proficient children...” http://www2.ed.gov/programs/sfgp/nrgcomp.html#paren

14. What does the research say? “Involving the families and the community contributes to children’s academic and social success.” Beyond the Bake Sale, 2

15. What does the research say? When the music stops: • Read each research-supported benefit. • Distribute 7 points between the two benefits based on importance and relevance to your district. • Briefly share one way to connect with families.

16. The Research • National PTA web sitereports the following student outcomes: • Higher grades, test scores, and graduation rates • Better school attendance • Increased motivation and better self-esteem • Lower rates of suspension • Decreased use of drugs and alcohol • Fewer instances of violent behavior • Greater enrollment in post-secondary education

17. Key findings… • Students have • Better Grades • Enroll in higher-level programs • Have higher graduation rates • Are more likely to enroll in postsecondary education

18. Key findings… • When families take an active interest in what they’re learning, students • display more positive attitudes toward school • behave better both in and out of school

19. Key findings… • Children do best if parents can play a variety of roles in their learning: • Helping at home • Volunteering at school • Planning their children’s future • Taking part in key decisions about the school program

20. Key findings… • Middle and High School students whose families remain involved: • Make better transitions • Maintain the quality of their work • Develop realistic plans for the future • Less likely to drop out

21. Key findings… • Children from diverse cultural backgrounds tend to do better • When families and school staff join forces to bridge the gap between home and school cultures

22. The more the relationship between families and the school is a real partnership, the more student achievement increases.

23. Involved families are more likely… • To understand the goals of the teacher and school • To be more supportive of proposed changes • To rate teachers more highly

24. Teachers are more likely… • To rate families more positively • To hold fewer social class and racial stereotypes • To have more time to devote to teaching • To give children individual attention

25. Question… • What might a school look like: • that has created a genuine culture of school-family-community partnership, and • that has made real progress toward high social and academic achievement for all students?

26. Four Versions of Partnership… • Partnership School • Open-Door School • Come-if-We-Call School • Fortress School • Activity

27. Now… • Check the boxes that have the most statements under them marked or circled. Check only one box in a row.

28. Findings… • 3 or more of your check boxes • Fall in Fortress School • None under Open-Door or Partnership • Your school is trying to keep parents away rather than work with them • In standards-based terms, it is below basic

29. Findings… • 3 or more of your check boxes • Come-if-We-Call • None under Partnership • Your school may want parents to be involved only on its terms • In standards-based terms, it is basic

30. Findings… • At least 4 of your check boxes • Fall under Open-Door or Partnership • None under Fortress School • Your school welcomes families and supports them to be involved in a number of ways • In standards-based terms, it is proficient

31. Findings… • At least 3 of your check boxes • Fall under Partnership • And, the rest are under Open-Door • Your school is willing and able to work with all families • In standards-based terms, it is advanced

32. So, what does this mean… • Think quietly to yourself about what you just learned concerning your school’s willingness to include families and community • Brainstorm 3 ideas for an effective family-school partnership • Share those ideas with a partner to your right and a partner to your left. • Group Share

33. So, what does this mean… • Before we can create strong and effective partnerships with families, we have to believe not only that it’s important but also that it can be done – and that we can do it.

34. Creating Two-Way Communication… • What is it? • How do you accomplish this in your school? • How effective is it?

35. Effective Home-School Communication • Read the article to yourself • Select a sentence from the text that you find significant • Select a phrase from the text you find significant • Select a word you find significant

36. Effective Home-School Communication • Listen as group members SHARE • the sentence from the text that was significant • Then • a phrase from the text was significant • Then • a word that was significant NO discussion – tell your sentence, no explanation Follow the same process for phrase and word

37. Effective Home-School Communication Debrief: • What did you learn from the article? • What did you learn about the process?

38. How Family-Friendly is Your School? • Please complete the survey • Share your results with 1 other person • Discuss your results with 3 other people • Large group discussion

39. Traditional Programs which focus on Achievement… • Open Houses • Fall Fairs • Back-to-School Night • School Grounds • Book Fair • Family Fun Night • Others (Please Share!)

40. Time for You to Share…